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10 Apr 2013

Actually sewed something! Boyfriend jeans refashion

before & after
Well, actually it was not really sewing something from scratch, but after watching the British Sewing Bee contest I felt like I had to sew something. Anything. So decided to refashion something for quick results.

Boyfriend jeans have been around for almost a year now. They look great with a short, fitted jacket and must-have heels or ankle boots for the cold days.
I prefer this year's 'new' version of the BF jeans: the 'slim' one. These look less baggy, like Jennifer Aniston's or Gwen Stefani's below.
According to my internet research these jeans are:
- slouchy yet feminine
- have a relaxed fit
- have tapered legs
(I don't prefer the distressed patches)

The tapered legs form a huge problem for someone with quite muscular calves like myself. Usually all those jeans that are sitting a bit comfortable around my calves (not even talking about a loose fit!) are quite saggy looking above the knees an certainly not fitting around the waist.

So I turned to my BF's closet and pulled out a pair of quite expensive Versace jeans which were hidden there for about 7 years. (He used to spend money on stuff like that before we met) In a slightly 'disturbed' moment (and much to my horror) he took the jeans to his mom to have the legs shortened and after chopping the bottom parts of she hemmed them with a plain, thin grey thread!!!
I mean, first of all, everybody knows that is not the way you should shorten a pair of jeans, and especially not such an overexpensive pair!

Besides that, the thread used on these pair of jeans has a very distinctive golden sheen to it which can't be reproduced without cutting and reattaching the original hem. Not only is the original hem stitched with the right thread but it is often distressed together with the jeans, so you won't destroy the original design by cutting the hem off.Read my tutorial of how to do it the right way here!

Anyway, after I told BF that his jeans were in my opinion ruined, I've never seen him wearing those jeans (not once!). Because since then he gained some weight I know for sure he is not going to wear them in the future either.
Much to my luck, those jeans are just about the 'right' size and fit to become my (first) pair of boyfriend jeans!

Actually, the fit around the thighs and above that is just roomy enough, especially when worn with the must have accessory, a belt:

All I needed to do is to slightly taper the legs to make them sit comfortably but not overly loose around my calves. the destroyed hemline wasn't an issue since these jeans are worn with rolled up cuffs:

On top is a pair of Levi's 'bold curve' jeans. There is more room for the hips and thighs and below that it is tapered. It fits just right around my calves, without much room, so I choose to make the boyfriend jeans slightly wider along the leg line. I only took some fabric out of the outer seam which is not topstitched and straightened the curved line of the Levi's pair.
To avoid bulkiness I finished the bottom edge by a simple zigzag stitch.